Tellarite
, a Tellarite male (2154) | type = Humanoid | planet = Tellar Prime | image2 = Gav.jpg | imagecap2 = Gav, a Tellarite male (2268) | image3 = Archer meets Gral.jpg | imagecap3 = Tellarites standing next to Humans }} Tellarites were a warp-capable humanoid species from the class M planet Tellar Prime located in the Alpha Quadrant. In 2161, their homeworld became a founding member of the United Federation of Planets. Physiology Tellarites were a stout humanoid species with distinctive snouts. They wore beards and their hands were sometimes hoof-like in appearance. On average, Tellarites were shorter than Humans. Tellarites found Human room temperatures to be cold, indicative of a higher body temperature. ( ) Though the medical condition known as dyspnea is normally considered a symptom (i.e. the patient notices it him/herself) and not a sign (i.e. only a doctor notices the sign during a medical examination) in most species, it is regarded as a sign when present in Tellarites. ( ) Society Tellarites sometimes took mud baths. ( ) Tellarites were known to be an impatient people. ( ) They were also known for their "stubborn pride." ( ) They had a propensity toward strong emotion. However, they enjoyed a good argument, and they even considered it (presumably in the form of debate) a sport on Tellar. ( ) Tellarites often began an interaction with a series of complaints; this was how they started arguments with someone they had recently met. If they had nothing to complain about they would simply insult the person. Because of their ability to argue, Tellarites made excellent politicians. ( ) One of Elim Garak's suggested wedding dresses for Rom and Leeta was in the style of Tellarite modern. ( ) Although Tellarite cuisine seemed to be dominated by raw fruits and vegetables, canine was considered to be something of a delicacy. ( ) History Tellarites were warp-capable and involved in inter-species communication by the 20th century. In 1957, a picked up the distress call of a Vulcan ship that had crash landed on Earth, near Carbon Creek, Pennsylvania. They passed this information onto the Vulcan High Command. ( ) Some time before 2154, the Tellarites were in conflict with the Andorians. Ambassador recalled being aboard a Tellarite cruiser as they drove "those blue demons" back into their own territory by force. ( ) In April 2152, a passing Tellarite vessel directed the , suffering severe damage after an encounter in a Romulan minefield, to an automated repair facility. Subcommander T'Pol then stated that Tellarites were generally considered trustworthy. ( ) However, as of the 2150s, some Tellarites were also involved in dubious businesses. In March 2153, the Tellarite bounty hunter Skalaar, working for the Klingons, captured the Human Jonathan Archer, captain of the Enterprise. However, he later helped him to escape from the Klingon ship. Skalaar's brother, Gaavrin, who worked on a space station at that time, used to run a freighter, the Tezra, together with him. In May 2154, a Tellarite was bidding at an Orion slave auction on Verex III in the Borderland. ( ) In November 2154, a Tellarite delegation led by Ambassador Gral was being transported to the planetoid Babel by the Enterprise to resolve a long standing trade dispute with the Andorians. The original conference agenda covered only trade regulations for the sector. However, a Romulan plot to destabilize the region had the opposite effect and Cpt. Archer was able to create a temporary alliance among the Andorians, Vulcans, Humans, and Tellarites. The proceeding conference later helped bring peace to the strained Tellarite-Andorian relations. ( ) In 2155, a delegation of Tellarite ambassadors was sent to Earth to join in talks of forming a Coalition of Planets. Minister Nathan Samuels joked that the new universal translators were working a little too well when it came to talking to the Tellarites. During the conference, the Coridans also rejected the Tellarite proposal of a trade embargo against the Orion Syndicate. The Coridan representative claimed his people have been trading with the Orions for centuries and that the accusation of Orions attacking Tellarite freighters constituted slander. Despite subsequent terrorist acts by the xenophobic Terra Prime movement, which tries to drive all non-Humans from Earth, the conference can eventually be resumed. ( ) Several participants at the Coalition of Planets conference became welded together in 2156, when the conflict with the Romulan Star Empire escalated into the Earth-Romulan War. A humiliating defeat of the Romulans by an alliance of Tellarite, Andorian, Vulcan, and Earth forces at the Battle of Cheron in 2160 effectively ended the war and led to the establishment of the Romulan Neutral Zone between the two power blocs. ( ; ) Some time prior to 2161, Shallash gained notoriety as the second Tellarite liberator. ( ) In 2161, Tellar became a founding member of the United Federation of Planets along with its old war allies Earth, Andoria, and . ( ) As a result, the Tellarites held a seat on the Federation Council and served as Starfleet officers. ( ; ) In 2268, the planet sought admission to the United Federation of Planets. However, due to the wealth of dilithium available on Coridan and the presence of illegal mining operations, Coridan's admission was a controversial subject between Tellarites and Vulcans. The Babel Conference was convened to settle the matter and ultimately approved Coridan's admission. Tellarite Ambassador Gav was among the delegates to the Babel Conference, but Thelev, an Orion infiltrator in Andorian disguise on board the Federation starship , assassinated him and tried to frame Ambassador Sarek of Vulcan, who, at the conference itself, was ultimately credited with achieving the consensus towards admitting the planet to the Federation, for the assassination. ( ; ) A Tellarite served on the ruling council of the pocket dimension Elysia, during the late 23rd century. It was unknown how long his species had been trapped in that universe. ( ) In 2286, at least one Tellarite was serving on the Federation Council. ( ) In 2293, at least two Tellarites were present at the Khitomner Conference. ( ) By the late 24th century, Tellarites were serving in Starfleet. A drunken Klingon at the celebrations for the Order of the Bat'leth in 2373 bragged about having killed the Tellarite helmsman of Laporin's starship. ( ) During the 2370s, Tellarite freighters occasionally conducted trade through starbase Deep Space 9. ( ) Following the fall of Betazed during the Dominion War, in 2374, many believed that Tellar could be the Dominion's next target. ( ) Mirror universe In the mirror universe, Tellarites had been subjugated by the Terran Empire sometime prior to 2155, though some had joined the rebellion against the Empire. Major and Doctor of the tortured a Tellarite crewman named Terev in the agony booth as a demonstration of the device for Captain Maximilian Forrest and Commander . Reed's philosophy on Tellarites was that they were "all guilty of something". ( ) At one point, frustrated with a lack of progress while trying to apprehend the rogue Gorn Slar aboard the stolen , Archer raged that "we'd have more luck sending a squad of Tellarites to capture this thing!" ( ) The Tellarites's fate in the 23rd and 24th centuries, particularly after the fall of the Terran empire, is not known. Technology Sometime before the 2150s, the Tellarite freighter Tezra was the first of her class and able to haul one million metric tons of cargo at a maximum speed of warp 4.5. ( ) As of 2153, Skalaar considered force field emitters "the latest technology" aboard his shuttle. ( ) As of 2154, Tellarite technology was considered less advanced than that of Andorians. ( ) People * See: List of Tellarites Tellarite starships * Tellarite freighters: ** 20th century ** 22nd century ** 24th century * Tellarite shuttle * Tellarite warship Appendices Appearances * ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** * ** ** * ** * : ** ** * (reused footage) * (reused footage) Background information No female Tellarites have ever been explicitly shown on any of the movies or television series that we know of. Still, Worene's species is a possible candidate for a female Tellarite. The script of the episode includes a note that reads, "Tellarites do not get drunk, just feisty." Gav actor John Wheeler noted, "The makeup department at Desilu ... put a plaster mask all over my head and left me two little straws to breathe through." (These Are the Voyages: TOS Season Two) The Tellarite makeup in "Journey to Babel" mainly consisted of a one-piece prosthetic appliance, which was made from foam latex and covered the central part of the actor's face. This type of primordial mask prevented the performer from seeing through its lunettes. To complete the makeup, a beard and mustache were added. Both these hair pieces were hand-laid and were intended to blend into the actor's own head hair. The faux mustache helped to hide the edge of the snout appliance. (Star Trek: Aliens & Artifacts, p. 48) Character gloves were worn for these. (Star Trek: Aliens & Artifacts, p. 49) Two images taken from apparent make-up tests appeared in the ending credits of the Original Series episodes and . These tests appear to be for either Gav or his aide. The second image features regular stand-in and background actor William Blackburn. The makeup for the Tellarites was slightly revised for . Kirk Thatcher referred to these members of the species, whose makeup was done by Richard Snell, as "new Tellarites" and went on to say, "They don't look so 'rubber masky. " ( #111) The Tellarite councilor in Star Trek IV is wearing robes that were originally created for the white-furred Kazarite from . Although it is unclear from whether an alien species that is present at the Khitomer Conference was intended to be a Tellarite and despite its make-up (a man with a beard and large, upturned nose) only vaguely resembling the Tellarites seen in other incarnations, the alien was indeed meant to be a Tellarite, as confirmed in an interview with Richard Snell. (Cinefantastique, Vol. 22, No. 5, p. 34) There was no support, in the writing staff of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, for the possibility of a Tellarite or multiple members of the species appearing on that series. Makeup Supervisor Michael Westmore wanted to create an updated version of the Tellarite ever since , a wish he expected would be practical. ( , p. 83) In , Westmore related, "I've already sent Brannon [Braga] a note and said I want to do them. The eyes probably wouldn't be as deep sunk, I'd probably modify the pig-like nose a little bit, and the hair would be better – we'd probably have a thousand-dollar lace beard on him instead of that bushy thing they wore!" ( ) The Tellarite makeup was again changed, the species receiving a completely new makeup scheme, in in , due to improved makeup techniques as well as a greater budget. "The hunter in 'Bounty' [[Skalaar]] was originally a non-descript alien, but making him a familiar species helped jump-start the episode," explained Mike Sussman. ( ) Shortly after completing work on "Bounty", Executive Producer Brannon Braga commented on how the Tellarites had been updated, saying, "We reconceived the makeup a little bit so it's not quite as hokey. They were never really developed, so we also tried to create a little character and culture for them. We .... wouldn't hesitate to do the Tellarites again." ( , pp. 31-32) One thing missing in the Star Trek: Enterprise makeup were the three fingers which some Tellarites had in Star Trek: The Original Series, though a slight reference to that can be seen in their cloven fingernails. There was apparently a recurring motif of being punched in the gut by a Tellarite in Star Trek: Enterprise. In the final draft script of "Bounty", a visual reaction Skalaar gave to his brother – Gaavrin (also a Tellarite) – revealing to him that Tezra, a freighter Skalaar had owned and loved, had actually been cannibalized by the Klingons was described thus; "Skalaar looks like he's been punched in the gut." Similarly, in the episode , Charles "Trip" Tucker comments that he feels like he has been "gut-punched by a Tellarite." A Tellarite costume was put up for auction in the ''It's A Wrap!'' sale and auction. This auction has revealed that a fat suit was used under the Tellarite uniform to give the appearance of added weight. Apocrypha Shane Johnson, in The Worlds of the Federation, described Tellarites as belligerent, but good engineers, and called debate a favorite form of entertainment amongst Tellarites. Though series canon, as has been shown, offers hints of both, it has not definitely confirmed either as yet. According to the novel Last Full Measure, Gral is shown to be the Tellarite that signs the Federation Charter. In the novel Articles of the Federation, Bera chim Gleer was a Tellarite representative in the Federation council in the late 2370s, and early 2380s known for his long speeches, and opposing Federation President Nanietta Bacco's inauguration. He is also referenced by political figures in Worlds of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, Volume 2 and A Time to Heal. Articles of the Federation also featured Kav glasch Vokrak, a Tellarite reporter. A Tellarite named Colv served as an Engineer on a cargo freighter in Star Trek: SCE: . The Tellarite people are later referenced in the novel for their involvement in "the infamous Tellarite bar-fight story," which is popular among the da Vinci crew. In the eBooks of Star Trek: SCE that are eventually printed as paperback novels, a Tellarite character called Mor glasch Tev takes over the position of Second Officer after Kieran Duffy's death. In the novel The IDIC Epidemic, Tellarites are listed as composing less than 28% of the Vulcan Science colony Nisus. In the Star Trek: 25th Anniversary game, Kirk, Spock, and McCoy encounter a Tellarite on Pollux V who describes the Krognik demon – a creature from Tellarite mythology. This creature is the traditional shape of the Tellarite devil and his minions. Its physical appearance is described as being decidedly wolfish, with sharp teeth in a long snout. Tellarites have made two appearances in comics from IDW Publishing. Christopher Pike encountered some on Babel in 2265 when he was being feted as Fleet Captain. One, Administrator Muso, was a wanted criminal and bounty hunter, and was taken into custody with the help of an Orion slave girl. (Alien Spotlight: "Orions") While investigating a conspiracy in Starfleet, Jean-Luc Picard was fired on by a Tellarite in the shadows on the grounds of Starfleet Academy. (Star Trek: The Next Generation - The Space Between: "An Inconvenient Truth") The Star Trek Roleplaying Game Starfleet Operations Manual and Aliens supplements characterize Tellarites as having great mechanical aptitude, perhaps due to their greater perception of distance, dimension and depth, as well as being extensively trained in engineering at every level of the education process. Female Tellarites are a playable race and gender for the Federation faction in Star Trek Online. Females are depicted as having the same pig-like facial features, but with pointed, wide extended ears. External links * * ca:Teŀlarites de:Tellarit es:Tellaritas fr:Tellarite ja:テラライト pl:Tellaryci pt:Tellarita Category:Species